The Love of a Vampire

Chapter 5

“Micah, we have summoned you not only to become the royal representative of the Kingdom of Magic, but also, to be the next guardian of the water element and its realm.”

Micah blinked her eyes and frowned. She heard legends about the element guardians and how they answer to Queen Amara as their master, but she never thought she could meet one, and what does becoming the next guardian even mean? Rumor has it that their king is the leader of the element guardians and is also the fire guardian himself, but no one has ever heard the king confirm it.

“I don’t understand. How am I the next guardian of the water element?” Micah asked in confusion.

“I have been waiting for you for decades, Micah. You are my successor.” Agua replied. Micah’s frown got deeper. “What are you talking about?”

“Element guardians are given the chance to choose their successor and I choose you to be mine.” Micah inhaled sharply, blinking her eyes trying to process what she had just heard. “You’re the guardian of water, but why do you choose me?”

“I have waited decades for my successor to arrive. I have had a few candidates before but none of them are fit to be the next guardian. When our mistress…….” Agua turned her head to the side, giving Queen Amara a quick glance as she continued, “…… became a guardian herself through the blessing of the Moon Goddess’ daughter----“

“The High Queen.”

Agua nodded her head. “Yes, the High Queen. I’ve always thought being the daughter of the Moon Goddess was just a false claim in order to bring fear to their subjects, but upon meeting her, I believed it.”

“…..Anyway, our queen used to be the master of the four guardians, but now that she’s one of us, we no longer answer to a master. In order to bring balance to nature, the High Queen instructed the last generation of element guardians to choose the last successor of our power.”

“Our leader, the fire guardian, chose our king to be his successor or, in simple terms, King Damien is the heir of the fire guardian’s power. The power of fire is his now and it will always be his until his death.”

“The guardian of air transferred her power to Queen Amara, but for the queen to become a guardian, she must choose someone else to bear the power of the air. Every guardian has already chosen their heir, all but me.”

Micah bit her lower lip in deep thought. Agua and Queen Amara are silently observing her as she taps her finger on her glass. Lifting her head to meet Agua’s gaze, Micah asked again, “Again, why me? What about Queen Amara’s children? I’m sure one of them is more than worthy of becoming the next guardian.”

“I thought one of them would be……. but my power is not calling out to them. It is our magic that chooses our successor and from the moment you were born, my magic has responded to you.” Agua answered, recalling the day when Micah was born. She felt as if her powers were being drained from her. Agua knew then that her successor had been born. Ever since then, she had watched her grow. She saw everything that was happening to her, and it made her understand why the waters chose Micah to be their final master.

“I know this is hard to digest, but even if you reject it, sooner or later, my powers will still come for you. It had chosen you.” Agua added.

Micah nodded her head as she finally understood her dreams. That was the waters calling her. Sighing, Agua said, “I’ll give you time to think about it-----“

“I accept.” Agua raised her eyebrows upon hearing Micah’s answer.

“Are you sure, Micah?” Queen Amara asked.

“I feel nothing but gratitude that I am chosen for such an honor. I won’t promise anything, but I’ll do my best to prove myself worthy of the water element.” Micah bowed her head to show her gratitude.

Agua smiled. With her hand, she created a ball of water, the size of a Ping-Pong ball. “Once you take this, all my powers will be transferred to you.”

Micah lifted his head and accepted the ball of water. It flew from Agua’s hand to hers. Micah smiled as the ball of water floated over her palm. Closing her palm, she turned to face Agua. “Do you have any words of advice for me as my predecessor?"

Chuckling, Agua replied, “Your powers will help you along the way. Just remember not to limit yourself to its possibilities. Know your elements and learn to understand them. Once you do, nothing is impossible with it. Let your imagination soar.”

Frowning, Micah blinked her eyes. “That’s pretty basic, but I’ll keep that in mind. Once again, thank you, Agua and Queen Amara for choosing me.”

“The water chose you for a reason, Micah. Once you become the last guardian of the waters, your journey is yours to decide. The position I gave you as a royal representative was just an alibi. You can have it, or you can leave it.”

“If you decide to stay for the job, then you’re welcome, but if you decide to do other things, it is your freedom to do so. Don’t limit yourself within the borders of this kingdom; there are five kingdoms more that you haven’t been into yet, but don’t forget that you will always have a home here. YOU ARE AN ELEMENT GUARDIAN.”

Micah stood from her seat and bowed her head once again. “Your majesty, your words mean the world to me. Thank you for this honor.”

Queen Amara smiled. Standing from her seat, she walked closer to Amara, placing her hand under her chin to raise Micah’s head. She looked at her and smiled. Pulling Micah close, she gave her a tight hug.

Breaking the hug, they turned to Agua, who smiled and bowed her head in respect to her successor. Queen Amara turned to Micah once again and said, “Now off you go. You still have a ball to attend.”

“Thank you, your majesty. Agua, thank you.”

“Go and slay the world, kiddo.” Agua said, making Micah chuckle.

On Micah’s way out of the castle, she opened her hand to release the ball of water she got from Agua. Closing her hand, the ball of water disappeared. Micah couldn’t help the smile to form on her lips because she knew that this is where it all changed.

~~~~~~

Queen Amara and Agua are watching her as Micah leaves the castle. They are standing on the balcony as they watch her leave.

“Do you think her body can handle the transfer? Isn’t it a little too early for her to receive your powers? Micah can die during the transition even if she’s a healer.” Queen Amara said, her voice laced with concern. Initially, she wanted to prepare Micah’s mind, body, and soul for the transfer of power. The pain during the transition is so unbearable that it can lead to death.

The guardian of the water smirked. “Micah is no ordinary healer. I’ve watched her grow and, for almost three centuries in this world, she is the most powerful healer I have ever seen. She may be just a healer in the eyes of everyone, but she is not to be taken lightly.”

Queen Amara cannot believe what she’s hearing. Aside from Agua’s revelation about Micah, she has never heard Agua praise anyone before. “In addition to her power is her wit. Micah is observant and she practices healing and body alterations every time she discovers one. I can’t count the times she got magic deficiency from practicing.”

Agua’s voice was filled with pride as she talked about her successor. She didn’t regret waiting at all. “That kid is tenacious. I know she can handle this. Micah has the character and the soul of the waters. She’s calm and disastrous.”

“I’ve never seen you so proud.” Queen Amara commented, amused. “You’ve always been so reserved, Agua. I’m happy that I could see you expressing yourself this way; not the usual rainy day when you’re sad or the big waves in the ocean when you’re mad.”

“I was always out of control, Amara, and reckless. I hope Micah won’t be as reckless as I am.” Agua replied.

“Why are you in a hurry to transfer your powers to her? Don’t you think she needs more time?” Queen Amara asked.

“I have already died, Amara. If it wasn’t for the last guardian transferring her powers to me, I wouldn’t be here.” Agua replied.

“But guardians are blessed with eternal life, are they not?”

“Yes, they are but, in my case, the waters have only let me live this long because they are waiting for their next master. And when Micah was born, I could feel my life force draining day by day and once she finishes the transition, I can now rest.” Agua turned her head to Queen Amara and smiled, but then her smile faded when suddenly she lost the strength in her legs, making her kneel on the floor.

“Agua. What happened?” the queen asked as she placed her arms around Agua to give her support. “She has started the transition.”

~~~

Nobody was home when Micah arrived. Her parents have already left for work. Sighing, she went to her room. Locking the door, she sits on her bed and opened her hand, releasing the ball of water from Agua.

Micah squeezed her eyes shut and as she fluttered them open, she placed the ball of water into her mouth and swallowed it whole. She felt both warmth and cold crawling into her system. Micah clutched her chest as it suddenly felt harder to breathe.

Blinking her eyes, she crawled on her bed and reached for her phone, sending a quick message to Arci that she couldn’t attend the ball. A wave of pain in her lower stomach made Micah gasp. She buried her face in her pillow to suppress the painful cry.

Closing her eyes as cold sweat started to crawl its way down to her face, she focused her healing magic on the pain, easing it only for a brief moment. Micah cried once again as another wave of pain overcame her body.

From her lower stomach, the pain started to spread, numbing her legs and her arms. She can’t feel them anymore. Micah breathed in and out to calm her beating heart, but she hissed when a wave of pain haunted her again.

She curled her body on the bed, feeling both heat and cold. “Please, let this be over.” Micah whispered almost to herself. Another wave of pain came and this time it was almost unbearable. Micah was panting, trying to stay conscious, but the pain was blurring her vision.

Her eyelids are getting heavier. Finally giving up, she closed her eyes to succumb to darkness but a knock on her door made her snap her eyes open.

“Micah? Are you alright?” It was Arci.

“Hey, why is your door locked? Are you okay? Come on, you can’t just text me that you’re not going to the ball. Hey, what’s going on?!” Arci knocked on the door louder. She leaned her ears closer to the door, trying to hear what was going on inside, but she heard nothing.

“Micah?” she called again but didn’t hear a reply. “Micah, I swear to god I will break this door to pieces if you don’t----“

Arci gasped when the door suddenly opened. Micah was peeking through the small space between the doors. “What’s wrong with you? You look pale.”

Then the realization hit her. Arci’s eyes grew wide. “Oh no. Is it the hickey? Did it have some sort of side effects? Did he actually drain your blood?”

Micah sighed weakly. “Please Arci, it’s not like that…..” Micah pinched her arm hard as another pain came. “….I—I was up reading last night and I tried doing some magic and one enchantment had gone wrong, draining me of my magic.”

“You stupid girl and you went to the castle looking like that?” Arci asked.

“No, I used some makeup.” Micah simply replied. She was barely keeping herself up. Her body is leaning on the door frame for support.

“Take a good rest then. There’s really nothing we can do about magic deficiency. It is a sickness that no healer can cure. I’m still mad at you for ditching the ball though.”

“You and Benjamin have fun.” Micah said.

“Okay. Rest. I’m sure your magic will return at the end of the day.” Micah nodded her head and forced a smile. Arci sighed and left.

As soon as Micah closed the door, her body fell. She whimpered. Micah saw marks on her arm, crawling their way up to her face and to her body. The pain coming from the marks is like being carved by a dagger.

“….I’ll do my best to prove myself worthy of the water element.”

Those words suddenly echoed in her mind. Micah closes her eyes and as she opens them, she sees the bathroom door ajar. She stared at the dropping water on the sink and closed her eyes sighing; letting the darkness take over her vision.

~~~

In the castle, Agua was lying on the bed. Her body felt weak. She knew the transition was happening and right now, Micah is battling with the pain.

“Agua.”

“I’ll be fine. I never thought she would start the transition right away. I thought maybe she would wait until after the ball.” Agua said, her voice sounding weak. As the transition continues, her life force is also draining from her.

“As you said, she’s tenacious.” Queen Amara replied humorously. Agua couldn’t help but smile, then her smile faded when she saw raindrops falling outside. “It’s too early for that.”

“What? What is it? What’s wrong?” Queen Amara asked. Turning her head in the same direction as Agua, she frowned when she realized it was raining outside despite the sunny weather.

“Is this your doing?” Agua turned to her with a deep frown on her face as if she had just asked the stupidest question.

“It’s Micah? But how? It has only been twenty minutes since the transition. Usually, it takes at least an hour or even more. The power of the waters is not something one can acquire in a matter of minutes.” Agua was in deep thought because Queen Amara was right. Something must be going on.

With the little power she had left, Agua squeezed her eyes shut and used the waters from Micah’s house to see what she was doing and to her surprise, Micah’s room was flooded. Agua frowned deeply, searching the room for Micah but she was nowhere on the surface.

Sighing, Agua dived her vision into the water and sees Micah curled up under the flooding water. She looked at her closely. Micah’s face held nothing but pain. Instead, she looked rather serene; happily, asleep.

Agua retreated from her vision and as she opened her eyes, she saw Queen Amara staring at her; waiting for her to say something. “Did you see anything? Is she okay?”

Amusement was written all over Agua’s face as she remembered what she had just seen. When she left Micah’s room, she was expecting to see the whole house flooded but it was not. The flooding was just within Micah’s room.

The doors in Agua’s room slammed open, revealing the king. “What is it this time, Agua? The fishermen can’t sail because of the sudden giant waves.”

Hearing this made Agua laugh. The king frowned, turning his head to his wife questioningly. Queen Amara answered him with a shrug as she was quite confused as well. “Please bear with it for a moment, Damien. Micah has started the transition.”

King Damien frowned. “She’s doing this DURING her transition?”

“I told you, Micah is more than just a smart girl. She found a faster and less painful way of the transition.” Agua replied, smirking. “Instead of fighting the pain, she embraced it.”